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(No Model.)

J. G. BLESSING. STEM WINDING AND SETTING WATGH.

No. 542,984. Patented July 23, 1895.

UNITED STATES PATENT OEEICE.

JOHN G. BLESSING, OF LA SALLE, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO TI-IE IVESTERN"CLOCK MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

STEM WINDING AND SETTING WATCH.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 542,984, dated July 23,1895.

Application filed August 3l, 1894. Serial No. 521,800. (No model.)

To @ZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JOHN G. BLEssING, a citizen ot' the United States,residing at La Salle, in the county of La Salle and State of Illinois,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in 'Vatches, of whichthe following is a specification.

My invention relates to watches, and particularly to watches having stemwinding and setting mechanism. It is designed especially to produce acheap and simple form of watch and one in which the works are retainedin the case in the simplest possible manner.

It is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, whereinm Figure I is aside View ot the watch with one side of the case removed. Fig. 2 is aview of the opposite side of the watch with the dial-plate removed; andFig. 3 is a cross-section on the line 3 3 of Fig. l, lookingr in thedirection indicated by the arrow.

Lilie parts are indicated by the same letters in all the figures.

A is aring or cylinder having the aperture A at one side.

B and C are the front and back plates, respectively, of the watehcase.

D and E are the plates of the works or mechanism, rigidly securedtogether by the pillars F, F', F2, and F3.

G is a cylindrical part having a portion adapted to pass through theaperture A and screw-threaded at G.

G2 is a brace or post rigidly inserted between the plates D and E andscrew-threaded to receive the screw-threaded portion G.

G3 is a cup-shaped end containing the spring G4.

G5 is astem passing through the cylindrical portion G and carrying atits inner' endy two pinions I'I and II', and at its other end carryingthe cap G7.

G8 is a ring pivotally secured to the cylindrical portion.

J is a bridge secured on the plate E and adapted to hold in position thedrum J', which contains the winding-spring J2, and has theoutwardly-proj ectin g toothed flan ge J 3, adapted to be engaged by thespring-dog J4.

K is a compound gear inserted in an aperture in the plate E, and havingon one side of said plate the inwardly-projecting crown-gear K and onthe other side of the plate the laterallyprojecting toothed iiange K2.The bridge .I also holds the compound gear K in the position shown inFig. 3.

M is a pinion having the short stud M', which is received into asuitable aperture in the plate D. This pinion is held in position by thefixed support M3. It meshes with the gear M, and by the train of gearsN, N', N2, and N3 is brought into operative connection with the hands,so as to turn them in either direction. The two gears II and Il arefixed rigidly upon their stem and I do not here attempt to show thedetails concerning their construction or the manner in which they aresecured to this stem, nor the manner in which they, together with thestem, are brought into position in connection with the case andmechanism. All these details are in the domain of mechanical expedients.I have shown two aperturesP and P in the plates D and E to give room forthe rotation of the pinion H.

The use and operation of my invention are as follows: IVhen the partsare in the position indicated in Fig. 3 the pinion I-I is in engagementwith the crown-gear K', and since the toothed anged K2 is in engagementwith the teeth on the barrel it is evident that if the stem G5 andpinion II be rotated in the proper direction the spring will be woundup. It is equally evident that the pinion II is idle at such times. New,by pushing the stein G5 and the pinions II and II inwardly against theaction of the spring G4 the pinion Il will be released from thecrown-gear and will be brought substantially vertically over the centerthereof, while the pinion II will be brought into operative engagementwith the pinion M, and since this pinion is by a suitable train of gearsin operative eonnectionm'ith the hands the rotation of the stem G a-ndpinion II' will rotate the hands in either direction to set them. Whenthe stem is released the spring retracts it to the position shown inFig. 3. I have called the compound gear K the winding-gear and thepinion M, I have called the hand-setting pinion.

It will be observed-that the distance between the two plates D and E issubstantially equal to the width of the ring A. The bridges,

IOO

outside pinions, dials, hands, dac., are therefore included in andsubstantially fill the spaces which are included between the respectiveplates I) and E and their opposed curved sides of the case. The pinion His, ,for example, made rigid with the stem G5, and the stem is passedthrough the central aperture of the pinion I-I until it has reached apoint where, by means, for example, of the feather R and collar R', thepinion H is made practically rigid with the stem. The stem is now passedinto the cylindrical portion G, which latter portion is passed throughthe aperture A and screwed firmly into the part G2. The spiral spring isthen placed in the cup G3 and the cap screwed in position on the end ofthe stem.

The case has but the one perforation, and the rim or ring forming thecentral portion ot the caseis clamped between the plates which are drawnfirmly against it and the enlarged outer portion of the cylindrical partG. Any tendency of the said plates with their associated works to movelaterally vin the case is prevented by the engagement of the edges ofthe plate with the parts of the side pieces of the case which 'slightlyoverhang the ring, as indicated in the drawings. When the works are tobe removed from the case, as, for example, to be repaired,itis onlynecessary to unscrew the cap G7 and slip the stem and pinion H inwardlytoward the center of the watch, so as to free the stem from the case,whereupon the works can be removed.

The size and proportion of the several parts are,of course, capable ofgreat variation without departing from the spirit of my invention.

It is evident,of course, that the mechanism may be reversed, as it were,so that the gear 4o on the stem will be normally in contact with themechanism for winding or setting, as may be required.

I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. In a watch thecombination of the following elements: a winding gear, a hand-settingpinion ot greater diameter than the gear,

the centers of the pinion and gear being sub stantially in the samevertical line passing 5o through their planes, a reciprocating stemhaving two pinions rigid thereon one adapted normally to engage thewinding gear the other adapted to engage the hand-setting pinion whenthe stem is moved so as to move the winding pinion out of engagementwith the winding gear. 1

2. In a watch the combination of the following elements: a winding gearhaving an inwardly projecting crown gear adapted to rotate in anaperture in one frame plate and an outward laterally projecting toothedflange adapted to engage the barrel, a hand-setting pinion provided witha hub adapted to be received and to rotate in an aperture in the otherplate, suitable supports' to retain the gear and pinion in position, areciprocating stem having two pinions rigid thereon and reciprocating ina plane substantially midway between the gear and the pinion, one ofsaid pinions adapted to engage the crown gear and the other adapted toengage the hand setting pinion when the stem is moved so as to move theirst pinion out of engagement with the crown gear.

3. In a watch the combination of a case containing a single aperturethrough the edge thereof, with a watch mechanism attached to a frameentirely vseparate from the case and adapted to be received into thecase and a part having an enlarged portion exterior to the case with a'screw -threaded portion adapted to pass through the aperture and bescrew-threaded into the frame of the works, whereby the case is clampedbetween the enlarged portion and the works frame and thus the parts areseparably attached together.

4. In a watch the combination of a case consisting of a central bandhaving curved sides slightly overhanging the band, with a movement framehaving two plates separated by about the width of the band and entirelyseparate from the case, lsaid band provided with an aperture and saidvmovement frame with a screw-threaded hole opposite said aperture, and astem provided with an exterior enlarged portion to bear against theoutside of the ring or band and a screw-threaded inner portion to passthrough the aperture in the band and be received into the screwthreadedhole in the movement frame.

JOHN G. BLESSING. Witnesses:

OTTO J. SEUFTLEBEN, WILLIAM PA'roN.

